Lake Forest College Assistant Vice President and Director of Athletics Jim Catanzaro recently announced that Ed Packel, a former coach and longtime professor at the College, will be the 2025 recipient of the Forester Impact Award. The award is sponsored by the Forester Athletic Network (F.A.N. Club) and will be presented at the Athletic Recognition Ceremony on Saturday, October 11, at 11:00 a.m. in the Sports and Recreation Center.

Packel, who graduated from Amherst College in 1963 and earned a doctorate in mathematics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1967, came to Lake Forest in 1971 and spent the next 42 years as a member of the faculty. He became the chair of the mathematics department in 1986 and served on various committees during his tenure. Packel was also a prize-winning author of five books and numerous articles in the field of mathematics and his professional travels took him all over the world.

His connection to Forester Athletics officially began in 1973 when he became the head coach of the men's soccer team. Lake Forest joined the Midwest Collegiate Athletic Conference (now the Midwest Conference) a year later and his team captured league titles in 1974, 1975, and 1976. The 1975 team also became the school's first to advance to the NCAA Division III Tournament and was inducted into the Forester Athletic Hall of Fame in 2015. Members of that squad will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of their accomplishments this fall.

After posting a 25-15-4 record in four seasons as head coach, Packel became one of the Foresters' biggest fans and has been in attendance at countless sporting events and other Athletic Department functions, especially soccer games, ever since. He has also supported the Foresters as a member of the FAN Club.

An avid runner, Packel completed 20 marathons and was elected to the Chicago Area Runners Association Hall of Fame. He founded the Lake Forest College Runners Club and for many years met up with other members of the faculty and staff, as well as athletes around the area, for a lunchtime training run through Lake Forest. Packel was also instrumental in an advisory role as the College added a varsity cross country program in the mid-1990s.

"Ed has meant so much to Forester Athletics for a long time," began Lake Forest College Vice President Jackie Slaats, who served as the Foresters' Director of Athletics from 1992-2019 and founded the F.A.N. Club. "In addition to coaching historically successful teams, he has taught and mentored countless student-athletes and been one of our most dedicated fans, especially to our men's and women's soccer teams. We have been fortunate to host several conference tournaments in the last few decades and he has been in attendance for nearly every one of them."

"It pleases me greatly to receive this award in this commemorative reunion year," commented Packel in response to his selection. "It brings back 50-year-old memories of teaching and coaching a fine group of soccer players, many of whom I am still in touch with to this day."

The Forester Impact Award honors individuals who have made a significant impact on athletics at Lake Forest College through their loyal support and whose consistent and meritorious commitment has contributed to the success of Forester Athletics. These individuals have gone above and beyond in serving and supporting the Forester athletic community. Packel joins Karen Herman, Spike Gummere, Paula Dau '58, Bob Tiernan '49, Tom Franke '63, the late Jean and Frank Mohr '52, and John Nelson '63 as recipients of the award.